Chicago Product Liability Attorney

Product Liability is the area of personal injury law in which manufacturers, distributors, suppliers, retailers, and others who make products available to the public are held responsible for the injuries those products cause. Manufacturers, distributors and sellers of products to the public must deliver products free of defects which harm an individual or numerous persons and to make good on that responsibility if their products are defective. “Products” covers a wide range of categories, including the following:

Medical devices, such as the Stryker hip implants

Medicine and drugs, both prescription and over-the-counter

Food and tobacco

Machinery and tools

Firearms

Automobiles, trucks and motorcycles, as well as accessories like tires, airbags and child car seats

Household products

Appliances

Toys

Clothing If someone is injured by a defective product, there are three types of product liability claims that may apply:

Manufacturing Defect

This type of product liability claim is appropriate if an injury is caused by a problem with how the product was made. Essentially, the product that causes the injury is somehow different than all the identical products of its type being sold.

Design Defect

In this type of product liability claim, the product’s design is flawed. Defective design product liability claims do not involve an error in the manufacturing of the product, rather the design of the entire line of products was inherently dangerous, regardless of the fact that the product which caused injury was perfectly manufactured.

Failure to Warn

If someone is injured by a product, and the product did not come with strong enough warnings or instructions regarding how to use it safely, they may have a products liability claim for failure to warn. Failure to warn product liability claims arise when a product is dangerous in a way that is not obvious to the consumer, or the consumer needs to exercise extra care in order to properly use the product that is not mentioned in the instructions. For example, if someone purchased an over-the-counter drug that lacked a warning on the hazards of using it with certain other drugs, and was injured when they combined it with other medication, that individual may have a may have a products liability claim for failure to warn. Some examples of defectively designed products include:

Airbags that are not thick enough to absorb the impact of a collision.

Sun block that does not adequately protect a person from the sun.

Riding lawnmowers with blades that do not immediately stop spinning when the machine is stopped by the operator.

Proving a Defective Product Liability Claim

Product liability is a complex area of law, and it’s important to have an experienced product liability attorney on your side. Winning your case requires proving these elements of your claim:

You suffered losses or you were injured,

The product is defective,

This defect caused your injury, and

You were using the product as intended.

Manufacturing defects tend to be easy to prove, whereas a design defect may be more difficult. Most often, you must demonstrate the danger posed by the design of the product was unreasonable. This aspect can be subtle or complicated. For example, car air bags can cause serious injuries, but they are also low cost and effective at saving people in many types of accidents. This gives a car manufacturer the grounds to argue that the product is not unreasonably dangerous. Proving the defect caused your injury can also be complicated. Sometimes this is very straightforward, but if you are driving a vehicle prone to flipping on turns and suffer an injury, a car manufacturer may argue your reckless driving was the cause of the injury if you happened to be speeding. The complexity of product liability cases underlines the importance of seeking the guidance of a qualified, experienced personal injury attorney as soon as possible.

Contact Agruss Law Firm, LLC, Today

If you have been injured by a defective product, contact Agruss Law Firm, LLC for a free consultation. We are a law firm representing individuals and families who have suffered an injury or loss due to an accident. Agruss Law Firm, LLC will handle your personal injury case quickly, will advise you every step of the way, and will not hesitate to go to trial for you. Lastly, Agruss Law Firm, LLC, does not get paid attorney’s fees unless we win your case. Our no-fee promise is that simple. Therefore, you have nothing to risk when you hire us—just the opportunity to seek justice.

The information on this Web site is for general purposes only and should not be interpreted to indicate a certain result will occur in your specific legal situation. Information on this Web site is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship.